Stoicism · The Stoic Way, part 7 of 20 · 4 October 2026 · Charlotte Himsworth
Epictetus: Freedom Within
Born enslaved, he taught that no one can imprison the mind.
Of all the Stoics, Epictetus may speak most directly to anyone who has ever felt powerless. Born around 50 CE in Hierapolis, in what is now Turkey, he spent his early life enslaved in Rome.
From slavery to teaching
He studied with Musonius Rufus, and after gaining his freedom he became a teacher. In 93 CE the emperor Domitian expelled philosophers from Rome, and Epictetus moved to Nicopolis in Greece, where he founded a school that drew students from across the empire.
His words, preserved
Epictetus wrote nothing himself. His student Arrian recorded his teaching in the Discourses and in a short summary known as the Handbook, or Enchiridion. It opens with the line that sums up Stoicism: “Of things some are in our power, and others are not.”
Freedom within
Epictetus knew real limits. He had lived without freedom of the body. Yet he taught that the mind remains free: our judgements, our choices and our responses can never truly be taken from us unless we give them away.
Not a denial of injustice
This is not a claim that slavery or cruelty are acceptable. It is a teaching about where our dignity lives. No circumstance can make us lose our capacity to choose how we respond, and that capacity is the root of our freedom.
A simple practice
Think of a situation where you feel powerless. Write two lists: what is not in your power, and what still is, however small. Choose one thing from the second list and act on it today.